Catch the Smile of Pacific Southwest Airlines

Friedkin then launched Friedkin Airlines Charter Service with an old, twin engine Cessna and two light four seater aircraft. The first charter customer wanted to fly from El Centro to San Diego. He only had a $100 bill and the airline didn't have change (the fare was $20). The passenger was asked to pay on the return, but he became nervous about flying when it started raining. He promised to send a check when he arrived home (he decided to drive), but died in a car crash on the way home. The first charter expedition for Friedkin Airlines was a non revenue one.

One other charter customer was a pregnant lady who insisted on flying from San Diego to Burbank. The airline didn't want to take her, but she stated she already had five children and she knew exactly when she was going to have this one. She is allowed to fly, without the pilot's knowledge. But the pilot learns about his passenger and radios ahead for an ambulance to meet the plane. The lady still insists she knows when the baby will be born, goes into the airport restaurant for a burger, gets into the ambulance, and has the baby ten minutes later at the hospital.

But charter business wasn't making it, either. Studies were undertaken to determine the feasibility of schedule airline service. Not certain where to fly to from San Diego, someone mentioned San Francisco. No one knew anything about San Francisco, but the principles and their wives piled into a plane and flew to San Francisco. A wonderful evening on the town was enough to convince them to fly to San Francisco. They even determined to use DC-3 because they were big planes and they would fly a lot of people. The company had no idea about the cost of a DC-3.

On 6 May 1949 the first PSA flight left San Diego's Lindbergh Field for Oakland via Burbank. This flight carried almost a full load of twenty-seven passengers, each paying the grand sum of $15.60. Bud Plosser was the pilot of that inaugural expedition.

PSA originally only flew on weekends and at low fare. This attracted so many military personnel that its initials were said to stand for the "Poor Sailor's Airline." Friedkin's intent was to divert airline passengers from buses and trains by keeping fares at a competitive level. One way to accomplish this goal was to

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